Mindfulness and Psychotherapyhttp://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness
A blog about mindfulness and psychotherapy by psychologist Elisha Goldstein, Ph.D.Tue, 03 Mar 2015 17:00:37 +0000en-UShourly1Train a Compassionate Brain with 21 Days of Purpose!http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/03/train-a-compassionate-brain-with-21-days-of-purpose/
http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/03/train-a-compassionate-brain-with-21-days-of-purpose/#commentsTue, 03 Mar 2015 14:48:05 +0000http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/?p=4494I’ve been in the midst of developing the new free e-Course21 Days of Purposethat is meant to support a key and radically important natural anti-depressant from Uncovering Happiness - Purpose/Compassion. Creating purpose is a process of understanding your personal personal values and how to put them into action in ways that serve something greater than yourself. In developing this 21 day course and starting to go through it, really amazing things have happened for me, the primary one being that this awareness and motivation to live with purpose and compassion is often on my mind.

I love this, it’s really amazing how having giving on your mind creates a feeling of empowerment, connection and happiness.

I’ve been developing an online symposium on Uncovering Happiness where I’m interviewing a number of different people, for example, Byron Katie, Rick Hanson, Dan Harris, Dan Siegel, Sharon Salzberg, Tara Brach and so many others. I’ll launch this sometime in April or May (I hope).

During an interview with Byron Katie she said, “If you have something valuable, you have to give it away, you just have to.”

We can allow our minds to pick that statement apart (and they’ll want to) to find the holes in it, but if you just take a moment and lean into what she is saying here, where do you notice this is true?

How would you feel if you started giving a little more?

As I say in Uncovering Happiness, the caveat here is for caregivers who are really burnt out on giving, in this case the entry point for you would be self-compassion and you’ll find a free self-compassion meditation on our new website for The Center for Mindful Living in Los Angeles (website launching soon).

I made this e-Course free because it’s completely in line with the value of the course itself. The time and energy I have spent in creating this is an act of giving and my hope is that it creates magnificent ripple effects as people prime their minds more toward compassion.

Ultimately, learning how to get increasingly better at living a compassionate life will only go back to serve you as it’s not only a natural anti-depressant, but it also simply serves to uncover happiness.

Here’s a truth in life:

You have a purpose in being here…
… and part of that is remembering that
you are part of something much larger than yourself.

I would love it if you chose to join 21 Days of Purpose, it’s free and it’s good. Let’s try and bring as much of this into the world as we can, it needs it.

Warmly,

Elisha Goldstein, PhD

As always, please share your thoughts, stories and questions below. Your interaction creates a living wisdom for us all to benefit from.

]]>http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/03/train-a-compassionate-brain-with-21-days-of-purpose/feed/0How to Fall in Love and Uncover Happiness in Four Minutes or Lesshttp://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/02/how-to-fall-in-love-and-uncover-happiness-in-four-minutes-or-less/
http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/02/how-to-fall-in-love-and-uncover-happiness-in-four-minutes-or-less/#commentsWed, 25 Feb 2015 20:23:57 +0000http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/?p=4484One of the primary pathways to an enduring happiness is facilitating a sense of connection. When we feel connected we feel balanced, when we feel balanced, we often feel happy. The problem is
as we grow up in this world, we have to learn how to shield ourselves from vulnerability and so we build up walls or put on armor that make connection more difficult.

One of the most powerful (and challenging) practices to do is look into another person’s eyes for a prolonged period of time as it immediately makes us feel vulnerable. It may not matter whether it’s a stranger or someone you’ve been in a partnership with for over 50 years (sometimes this makes it more difficult). But when we do it, it’s fascinating what arises.

Check out this short video from Soul Pancake to see some of the surprising results of people making connection:

One of the defining characteristics of compassion is recognizing our common humanity.

Behind my eyes and your eyes are the same fundamental needs, to feel cared about and understood – to feel a sense of belonging.

When we look into another’s eyes and see this, it can melt the barrier and uncover the connection that’s always been there. This is an essential element for Uncovering Happiness.

Try this out as an experiment for yourself:

Today, look into the people’s eyes that you meet and see the person behind the eyes. What happens when you bring the mindset that this person is “Just like me?” This mindset understands that underneath it all, this person wants the same things I do, to feel cared about, to feel understood, to feel accepted, a sense of belonging and to be happy.

]]>http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/02/how-to-fall-in-love-and-uncover-happiness-in-four-minutes-or-less/feed/0Mindfulness: What’s the POINT?http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/02/mindfulness-whats-the-point-2/
http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/02/mindfulness-whats-the-point-2/#commentsWed, 18 Feb 2015 05:00:55 +0000http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/?p=4477The brain loves to chunk information in order to remember things and there are so many great acronyms that help us remember to bring mindfulness into our lives. I’m going to list a few really key ones and then link you to respective guided practices or posts as a reference to play with them and bring them into your life. Finally, I’m going to introduce you to a new powerful acronym that gets to the point of mindfulness.

This is an all time favorite. On YouTube the recording that I created for A Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Workbook has almost 80,000 views because the acronym makes sense and it really helps us pause into the moment and open up to what matters.

This acronym created by Michelle McDonald and popularized and adapted by Tara Brach, is incredible for helping us gain perspective, self-compassion and confidence with our difficult feelings. We also experience stepping into our natural awareness.

This is a practice from The Now Effect that was adapted from Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) for the purpose of helping us pop out of auto-pilot, steady our minds and deepen into the present moment.

This is a newer acronym from Uncovering Happiness that helps us find strength and confidence through vulnerability. It incorporates all the elements of self-compassion, including the experience behind our common humanity.

POINT (Pause, Open, Inquire, Non-identify, Truth)

Here is the latest acronym that I think gets to the essence of mindfulness and because there is no prior reference to this, I’ll spell it out here. There is certainly overlap with this and other practices (RAIN in particular), but I think this acronym is really fitting.

Pause – This is what we first are doing in a mindfulness practice, we’re simply pausing to step into that space between stimulus and response. This doesn’t mean we need to stop moving (although that can be helpful at times), but we’re pausing the auto-pilot.

Open – After pausing we’re opening to what’s here in the moment. Maybe it’s a person in front of us that we’ve been neglecting to listen to, or maybe we’ve been on a hike busy in thought and we’re opening to the nature around us, or maybe we’re feeling stress, anxious, sad, or some other uncomfortable feeling and we’re opening to the reality that, that is what’s there.

Inquire/Investigate – Here is where we go beyond just opening to what’s here, but now begin getting curious about it. We put on our beginner’s mind cap and inquiring into the experience. We can get curious about the emotion and the physical expression of it. How big is it? What is the shape? Does it have a color? As we do this and just allow it to be we might also notice if it stays the same or shifts around.We can investigate deeper by asking it what it’s believing. If it’s a negative emotion does it believe that “I’m not good enough,” or “Something is fundamentally wrong with me,” or maybe “I’ll never be able to get better at XYZ.” This could be any number of negative beliefs.We can even inquire into the thoughts themselves now with these four questions in Uncovering Happiness that I adapted from Byron Katie’s four questions.

Non-identify/Natural Awareness – As we begin to Pause, Open and Investigate we get space from the experience itself. We’re practicing settling deeper into a sense of awareness viewing the experience. The awareness is not wrapped up in the experience, the sensations, emotions and thoughts are arising within a wider awareness. There’s a sense of freedom in this, we’re not so identified with it anymore, it’s our natural awareness.

Truth – As we settle into this natural awareness we come to recognize the truth that fundamentally this is our refuge and is who we are beneath the ever-changing flux of daily experiences. We start to see that everyone has this same natural awareness beneath the masks they wear.Most importantly, we start to sense to truth that we are all connected in this way. Or as Thich Nhat Hanh says, “we inter-are.” This is a truth of humanity.

So there it is, when I’m asked what the point of mindfulness is, there are many reasons; stress reduction, helping alleviate our suffering, opening up to joy and gratitude are all wonderful intentions and worthwhile motivations to bring mindfulness into our lives.

And at the same time, underneath it all, there’s even a bigger picture, to begin experiencing the reality of our common humanity (or even our common being-ness in the universe). We are not islands and are far more connected than we realize.

Warmly,

Elisha

]]>http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/02/mindfulness-whats-the-point-2/feed/1The Mindful Way Through Stress: An Interview with Shamash Alidinahttp://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/02/4455/
http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/02/4455/#commentsMon, 09 Feb 2015 20:41:45 +0000http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/?p=4455Stress seems to be the underlying issue with many of our aversive conditions whether they’re psychological or physical. My good friend Shamash Alidina, author of the international bestselling book Mindfulness For Dummies and his newest release The Mindful Way through Stress: The Proven 8-Week Path to Health, Happiness, and Well-Being, comes to us today to share the direction of mindfulness in our culture, how it impacts his life and a couple quick tips from his book to get us started.

Elisha: Welcome Shamash!

Shamash: Great to be here with you.

Elisha: Mindfulness is enjoying quite a boon in the West, where do you see mindfulness currently in our culture and where is it going?

Shamash: I think mindfulness is still very much in its infancy in our culture. The general public hears about it from time to time, but I don’t think it’s still fully accepted. But we’re certainly on the path towards that happening. The level of interest in mindfulness and it’s growth is exponential at the moment. As for the future, I don’t know! I have little doubt that in the next year, the research evidence will continue to grow. And as far I can see, people’s desire to learn mindfulness keeps growing too. I’m optimistic and like to think that the quality of mindfulness teaching will evolve and filter into all sorts of organisations, from prisons to hospitals, from schools to corporates. And eventually mindfulness will be as normal as going for a jog in the morning. Although at the moment, I’m much more likely to meditate than jog!

Elisha: How has mindfulness been effective for you, give us some personal stories.

Shamash: My most recent example of mindfulness coming in to save the day was around Christmas time. I’d come back home to London after a trip to Boston, across Mexico and across California. Great fun, but it took it’s toll. I could feel my energy levels much lower than usual as I recovered from the jet lag. That pond between the UK and US is a fair few time zones apart! If I pushed myself back into work in early January, I thought I’d probably get worse. So I meditated whenever I felt tired. And that ended up becoming hours of mindfulness meditation everyday. After about a week, I felt so much better. Since then, I’ve enjoy much deeper mindfulness meditations and lots of insights – so I’m really grateful for my illness.

Elisha: If you were to pick a couple practices out of your book that people can engage right now, what would they be?

Shamash: Try these two:

Tool #1
– Tune into your body and notice how stressed you feel right now. If it feels high and you feel a bit out of control, consider what’s the cause of your stress…your stress. Then try using the four A’s of stress management. Accept, Avoid, Alter or Adapt your stressor.

Accept. If you can’t change your stressor, begin to accept it. Feel the sensations in your body and hold the feeling with gentleness and kindness. Massage the feeling with your hand.

Adapt the stressor. See the problem as an opportunity – a challenge to overcome! Think how you’ll discover new ways to cope.

Alter the stressor by breaking it down into smaller chunks. Or talk to a friend to discover a different way to handle the stress.

Avoid the stressor. Sometimes, you can just as easily avoid the person or thing that’s causing you too much stress. That saves yourself lots of unnecessary difficulty. Why not!

Tool #2
Imagine you’re holding two heavy bags in your hands – one representing the past, and the other representing your future. Imagine how heavy they feel, as vividly as you can. After a minute or so, imagine lowering those bags to the ground. Feel the weight come off your shoulders. Gently smile with relief. Enjoy a few minutes rejuvenating in the peace of the present moment, without having to think about past and future. And feel free to come back to exercise regularly if the process works for you.

Thank you Shamash for your wisdom.

As always, please share your thoughts, questions and stories below. Your interaction gives us a living wisdom for us all to benefit from.

]]>http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/02/4455/feed/0Compassion: Brain Food for Happinesshttp://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/02/compassion-brain-food-for-happiness/
http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/02/compassion-brain-food-for-happiness/#commentsSun, 01 Feb 2015 17:21:49 +0000http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/?p=4448Did you know that compassion, the act of recognizing someone else’s suffering with the inclination to want to support them, creates important activity shifts in the brain that are associated with resiliency and well-being?

I recently attended a talk at a fundraiser where the presenter, Amy McLaren, had conveyed her story of going to Kenya with her husband and making a deal with a child there that if he shares his report card with them at the end of the month, they would pay for a month of his schooling.

They didn’t expect him to follow through, but after they returned back to Canada, a month later they received a letter with a picture of this boy holding up his report card.

He followed through and so did they.

Every month he would send his report card and every month they would pay for another month of school. Years later this boy is now in business school and has developeda business creating bracelets of “Hope,” employing a group of other people. Amy and her husband have now founded World Teachers Aid, an organization dedicated to improving education in underdeveloped countries.

In writing Uncovering Happiness many people have been asking me what I mean by happiness. The kind of happiness I’m referring to is what the Greeks call eudaimonic happiness, this is a deeper, more meaningful type of happiness than, let’s say, the happiness you experience when you have a positive emotion after winning a pot of money. You might get swept up with the mental and emotional waves from time to time, but underneath it is this core sense of self-love and confidence in knowing that you can handle it and things are going to be okay.

It’s interesting; research shows that people who have a high level of hedonic well-being – simply, positive emotions – have a much higher pro-inflammatory gene expression than people with that core sense of eudaimonic well-being. Depression and disease are associated with cellular inflammation.

So if we’re going to uncover happiness, we want it to be the meaningful and purposeful type.

One of the natural anti-depressants (sources of happiness) in Uncovering Happiness is developing purpose, compassion and connection.

It can be an enormous source of happiness to begin to put our values into action. Not only that, imagine what difference it can make in the lives of others. For that Kenyan boy the ripple effects are profound.

Consider for a moment, what causes are you involved in beyond your own? If not much comes up, consider what matters to you in this world and look up how you might support that cause. This is activating the neural circuits of compassion, a natural anti-depressant and source of real happiness.

Whatever arises, begin engaging that regularly even in baby steps.

As you go, allow your experience to be your guide.

Warmly,

Elisha Goldstein, PhD

PS – Compassion creates connection; here’s a 1-minute video on The Power of Connection, enjoy!

]]>http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/02/compassion-brain-food-for-happiness/feed/2Overwhelmed Or Depressed? Wisdom from Martin Luther King, Jr.http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/01/overwhelmed-or-depressed-wisdom-from-martin-luther-king-jr/
http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/01/overwhelmed-or-depressed-wisdom-from-martin-luther-king-jr/#commentsMon, 19 Jan 2015 22:49:56 +0000http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/?p=4435Tis the season to feel a bit down, overwhelmed and stressed. When the mind is focusing on the negative details of life, it’s practicing seeing things through this lens and what we practice and repeat creates a habit of thoughts, feelings, emotions and sensations. I call this getting caught in a “depressive loop.”

Mindfulness is about being aware of what lens we’re wearing when looking at life, so we can be more intentional. The unintentional act of looking toward the future with a negative lens can really sap our motivation to make any progress toward a more fruitful and positive future. After all, if we’re anticipating doomsday, what’s the point in even trying? This is major fruit for procrastination too.

Feeling depressed lights up the avoidance circuits in the brain. It’s experienced as a disengagement from life. In Uncovering Happiness I go through the science and practice of a handful of natural anti-depressants that live within every one of us.

But when we’re feeling overwhelmed with life, our negative thinking arises again, “What’s the point” or “Who cares.” But these thoughts are not facts, even the ones that say they are.

Martin Luther King, Jr. had some wise words for us about this.

“Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase. Just take the first step.”

This piece of wisdom has been said in so many different ways, maybe the most famous being “The longest journey begins with a single step,” which was attributed to Lao Tzu.

In times of depression, when it comes to being in a moment when an onslaught of thoughts are telling you it’s overwhelming or you’ll never get it all done, having Martin Luther King Jr. or Lao Tzu in mind might be helpful.

Let’s face it, there’s times where it’s a success to take a shower or get out of bed. That is a single step.

I ride a single speed bike at times over a hill. There is a substantial difference when I do it looking up at the hill engaging thoughts of disbelief at how much of the hill there is left to go versus focusing on one pedal at a time. I actually time the pedals with my breathing. When I do it like this, it seems like much less effort and I’m at the top of the hill before I know it.

This is a truism whether someone is depressed and needs to see some movement or accomplishment to get the engines going or whether there is an overwhelming sensation in life due to a personal or professional project.

Remember these words from MLK:

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

So, take a leap of faith that your thoughts aren’t facts, breathe, take that first step back into engaging life. This is an act of self-love. Be on the lookout for what might be good right now. In the end, you’re likely to be thankful you did.

You may or may not have heard by now that our brain is wired to pay attention more frequently, and with great veracity, to what’s negative. This doesn’t mean that the good moments in life aren’t happening, we’re just not wired to pay attention to them.

Why?

Because as a human race, we’re wired to survive, not be happy.

BUT,

I have a theory that in this moment in time we’re going through an evolution as a species where because of the overabundance of things pulling our attention, we’re being thrusted into growing our awareness – the kind of awareness that breeds balance, well-being and a greater sense of what matters.

So people are being turned onto mindfulness more. More spaces are offering it, more institutions are studying it and there’s greater media to get the word out about it.

Mindfulness provides us with awareness and the opportunity to take wise actions to further balance this negativity bias.

This is an evolution of an enduring happiness, you on board?

One of the simple things we can do when we become aware of our current conditioning is be on the lookout for the happy moments.
By happy moments I don’t mean just the drunken pleasures of life, I mean the whole spectrum from the small delights of enjoying a hot cup of tea, the sunshine splashing on your face, watching your child do something new for the first time (instead of being on your phone), or even feeling the relief from anxiety or depressive symptoms.

It’s about recognizing on a deep level that like the life of a butterfly or a flower, life is short and precious.

Mindfulness provides the opening, and then we have to intentionally notice these as they arise. From there we can make the choice to savor, appreciate and be grateful for them.

One thing I talk about is Uncovering Happiness, is that there are things we can do to ignite out natural anti-depressants and uncover that enduring sense of well-being. These micro-happy-moments of life can create small shifts in the brain that if practiced, savored and repeated can encourage positive neuroplasticity and an anti-depressant brain.

Take time today, maybe even this moment to consider, what’s good right now? If you notice something, let it linger…

As always, please share your thoughts, stories and questions below. Your interaction creates a living wisdom for us all to benefit from.

]]>http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/01/baby-steps-to-an-anti-depressant-brain/feed/2The Age of Insight (Wikipedia Entry 2050)http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/01/the-age-of-insight-wikipedia-entry-2050/
http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/01/the-age-of-insight-wikipedia-entry-2050/#commentsFri, 09 Jan 2015 18:58:19 +0000http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/?p=4415Mindfulness just continues to grow and not only positively influence people’s lives, but is now influencing so many sectors of our society. I can’t help but imagine how it’s going to impact the years that follow (Maybe I’m a bit on an idealist, but I’ll hold that label lightly).

The following is my futurist’s take on The Mindfulness Revolution.

Wikipedia Entry 2050:

“The Insight Age is a period in human history characterized by the shift from a “continuous fractured attention” brought on by The Information Age through technology, to an age based on an expanded awareness, an increasingly ability to harness control of our attention to what matters. The onset of the Insight Age is associated with The Mindfulness Revolution, just as The Digital Revolution marked the onset of The Information Age.

During The Insight Age, the phenomenon is that that the mindful industry creates a present-focused society surrounded by leaders in various sectors spanning their influence on how education, business, politics, healthcare, and other service sectors operate.

In our current culture, the mindful industry fosters insight for individuals to be more aware of their personal needs, increasing their focus, simplifying their decision making, strengthening their relationships and significantly lowering their stress.

This is accepted overwhelmingly by people throughout the entire economy as it naturally increases productivity, expands creativity and because it reduces healthcare costs, expands the bottom line. As a result many benefactors, companies and government invest significant capital in bringing mindfulness in a variety of industries throughout the global economy.

The Insight Age formed by capitalizing on a combination on ancient traditions, psychological research and technological advances in the 1990’s, starting with the fMRI, allowing us to see neurobiological changes in the brain due to mindfulness meditation.

This evolution of the human mind in daily life, as well as the adoption of it in early education has allowed for an increase in compassion, clearer communication and a reduction of personal and global conflict that now shape modern society.”

As Wikipedia goes, feel free to add sections to this in your comments below. Your interaction creates a living wisdom for us all to benefit from.

]]>http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2015/01/the-age-of-insight-wikipedia-entry-2050/feed/03 Steps to Make Your New Habits Stick this Yearhttp://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2014/12/3-steps-to-make-your-new-habits-stick-this-year/
http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2014/12/3-steps-to-make-your-new-habits-stick-this-year/#commentsTue, 30 Dec 2014 14:52:28 +0000http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/?p=4410Whether we like it or not, this time of year cues our minds to reflect and think about habits we want to change. If you’re reading this blog, odds are one of those habits are bringing mindfulness into your life more and allowing this to be the year where it sticks. Or maybe you’re also looking to change other habits that run alongside your values like being more self-compassion, living alongside your values, playing more or creating more mastery in life. All of these are basic elements that help uncover happiness.

Whatever the habit is that you want to make, here are a few practical tips to help make your changes stick.

Know the practice – If you’re trying to integrate the ability to become more present in your daily life, choose what you want to practice. You may want to integrate more formal practice that would come in the form of a sitting meditation or mindful yoga. Or maybe you want to integrate more informal moments of just being present to whatever you are doing. Or maybe both. Or perhaps it’s exercise, better sleep, or being a more present friend. Having an awareness of what you want to do is the first step.

Set up reminders – As much as we’d like to think, “I got it all up here, I can remember,” it’s important to understand that your brain works off cues. The way our environments are set up cue our brain to make certain decisions. There’s no fault in setting our environments up to support us in making the changes we want to make. For example, Mindfully Me is an app that will mind you to have more mindful moments. The Basics in Mindfulness Meditation 28 Day Program sends you an email daily for 28 days that cues you to integrate particular practices to make mindfulness stick. There are many other programs that do this for exercise, sleep and even to keep you on whatever task you like. Or go old school and just put up sticky notes in your area or as an optimal cue, get a real person to do the practice alongside to motivate one another.

Support network – Many of us have the rule in our heads that “I can do it on my own.” The fact is, you are more likely to actually integrate a new practice if you have others alongside you who are trying to do the same thing. Finding a group of people in your area or on the web that you can connect with is very important to sustaining this practice. You can connect through the challenges, learn from others, and feel part of a community. The community also serves as reminder that this is important in your life. Check out Meetup.com to find a local group who is doing exactly what you’re interested in. If there isn’t a local community, an online group is a good runner up.

Try these three things out with whatever you are trying to change. Really build them into your routine and have compassion for yourself as making changes is often a difficult challenge that is entirely attainable.

If you do stray practice “forgive and invite,” forgive yourself for the time gone by, learn from your obstacles and invite yourself in that present moment to begin again.

As always, please share your thoughts, stories, and questions below. Your interactions provide a living wisdom for us all to benefit from.

]]>http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2014/12/3-steps-to-make-your-new-habits-stick-this-year/feed/0The Power of a Simple Hug as a Natural Anti-Depressanthttp://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2014/12/the-power-of-a-simple-hug-as-a-natural-anti-depressant/
http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/2014/12/the-power-of-a-simple-hug-as-a-natural-anti-depressant/#commentsWed, 24 Dec 2014 14:40:14 +0000http://blogs.psychcentral.com/mindfulness/?p=4404There’s really nothing like the power of a big supportive hug. The body reads a sense of caring in the human touch. When we’re hugged we sense that on a deep level, we are not alone. In some ways it’s a shame that in our relationships with healing professionals hugging is often advised against.

There are so many wonderful stories where hugging has been a healing modality.

The Science and Practice of a Hug

In one study published in Nature Communications, researchers injected the hormone Oxytocin in older mice with muscle damage. After nine days the older mice healed faster than younger more strapping mice. These older mice could repair muscle damage up to 80 percent better than the younger mice.

There is real biological power in the simple act of a hug. It can melt away the stress from a day. It can lend itself told repairing emotional wounds.

A hug has the power to release Oxytocin, which sets us up to feel more balanced and soothed the moment we do it. It can strengthen relationships and lend itself toward forgiveness. If you give a hug to another person until both bodies relax it also allows you to feel more connected, as now your nervous systems are aligned.

Try: At some point throughout the day see if there’s someone you can hug. This can be a friend, your partner, a child or even a pet. If a colleague is open to it, you can try that too. Bring mindfulness to it, be aware of the sensation of the hug, what emotions are present and what thoughts arise.

If you there’s a barrier to hugging or you don’t have someone you feel comfortable doing so in the moment, it’s not all lost. Studies show that imagining actions stimulates the same parts of the brain as actually doing them. If you don’t have someone to hug at home, imagine hugging another person, hug yourself, or perhaps set the intention to hug others more often.

The point here is to practice nurturing the release of this natural antidepressant.

You likely know this to be true, but test it out during this time and see what you notice.

As always, please share your thoughts, stories and questions below. Your interaction creates a living wisdom for us all to benefit from